Google continues to make changes designed to boost ad revenue, direct users to Google-owned properties, and fulfill searchers’ needs without leaving a SERP. That means fewer opportunities for digital marketers to earn organic traffic from Google.

No, this isn’t another “SEO is dead” post.

Organic search is still a strong traffic source and should be a core component of your long-term strategy. But you need to adjust your strategy if you’re reliant on Google’s organic traffic.
None of the strategies shared here are new or trendsetting, in my opinion. They do level up to solid marketing, though. It’s not about algorithms or quick wins to boost your quarterly bottom line; it’s about diversifying your traffic to create stability when change comes (and yes, change will continue to come from Google).

Let’s dive in.

Ramp Up Your Paid Budget

Whether we monitor the shifts that are changing Google’s SERPs, react to the disappearance of organic social reach, or account for the improvements brought to programmatic from AI, it’s time to increase your paid media budget.

With fewer opportunities for organic traffic, we’re recommending brands significantly bump up their paid budgets for the coming year across our agency’s book of business.

On the paid search side, Google is constantly testing and tweaking its search network ad formatting and SERP coverage. Early 2018 marked the end of the right rail and the introduction of the four-unit, top of the results page. It must be working for their bottom line; Q3 revenue from Google search ads was up 16% year over year as advertisers are tapping into Google’s ad product set with larger budgets than before.

As organic listings continue to get knocked down, paying to play (even on your branded keywords) is essential.

The decrease in organic social reach has been more than well documented over the past few years. With Instagram’s feed changes this year and closer integration with Facebook, we see their ad platform driving more demand from marketers (especially on the B2C side) to stay relevant on the platform.

On the display and programmatic front, we’re placing a higher focus on filling the top of the funnel than ever before. Effectively building top-of-funnel users ready to engage with your brand for the first time provides the opportunity to create carefully segmented remarketing lists. While the influx of traffic shouldn’t drive conversions immediately, your remarketing campaigns should be able to drive mid-funnel and purchase-decision conversions depending on the industry you’re in.

Provide Value for Free

Hear me out. What if you actually gave your audience a reason to consume content on your site without expecting something in return?

Find a way to provide something useful and valuable.

It could be something innovative that users can’t find elsewhere, something interactive to engage them with your brand, or a piece of content that fulfills an immediate need and creates a moment of clarity for them.

Be useful for free. (Asking for an email address is not a free transaction.)

Patagonia’s Footprint Chronicles features an interactive map that allows visitors to learn where the company’s product supplies come from. The information is available to anyone who visits the site, without having to provide anything to access it.

It’s informative. It’s unique. And it drives affinity for the brand. It also has nearly 2,800 backlinks.

We’ve seen massive success in this space when executed with precision, and it all starts by picking the right influencers.

Finding influencers doesn’t have to result in buying promotion from trendy “Instagram Celebrities”. Some of the best success we’ve seen came from highly targeted, low volume-producing influencers. Think quality, not quantity.

Don’t Get Carried Away

There are still a lot of opportunities for organic search to thrive in your digital marketing initiatives. But be wary if you’re too dependent on that particular avenue for revenue-driving traffic, you may only be a few algorithm or SERP layout changes away from a place where your singular traffic source runs flat.